Autobiography of a Princess

Autobiography of a Princess

type

Movie

Current Status

In Season

mpaa

Unrated

runtime

60 minutes

performer

Madhur Jaffrey, James Mason

director

James Ivory

distributor

Connoisseur Video

genre

Romance, Drama

We gave it a B+

Autobiography of a Princess, an hour-long, made-for-public-TV gem from the Merchant-Ivory filmmaking team (A Room With a View) brings a self-exiled Indian princess (Madhur Jaffrey) and her father’s ex-tutor (James Mason) together on the deceased king’s birthday. Sipping Darjeeling tea as they bemoan their fallen positions, the chirpy Jaffrey and slightly pained Mason are alternately jovial and mournful, moving from reverential happiness, through sadness and confusion, to a distinct vindictiveness. The spare plot and limited setting — Jaffrey’s London apartment — suits video’s dimensions well, and aside from the ungainly score, this drama of loss is unpretentious and gripping. B+